International Laws and Treaties

We shouldn't be surprised by the coarseness spewing from Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who insulted President Barack Obama by calling him a "son of a whore." Vulgarity is Duterte's calling card. Miffed at the traffic jam that Pope Francis' visit to Manila caused in 2015, he called the pontiff exactly what he called Obama. He also once said he would castrate men who did not go along with his plan for mass vasectomies to deal with overpopulation. And at an election rally last spring, he joked about not getting a chance to rape an Australian woman, a missionary who in 1989 had been taken hostage, raped and killed during a prison riot.

Related "International Laws and Treaties" Articles

We shouldn't be surprised by the coarseness spewing from Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who insulted President Barack Obama by calling him a "son of a whore." Vulgarity is Duterte's calling card. Miffed at the traffic jam that Pope Francis' visit...

Sometimes I like to think back to the olden days, when it was easier for politicians to tell a good old-fashioned fib. Think of the age of the majestic woolly mammoth, for instance. Trudging along on a typical Ice Age morning, a caveman named Og could...

Donald Trump’s aggressively tough speech on immigration buried the notion that he planned to pivot away from the posture that got him the Republican nomination to a gentler position tailored for more moderate general election voters, Republicans included....

Donald Trump and his aides used to say that voters didn't care about the nitty-gritty of policy details. But now those details are tripping up his campaign.
For more than a week now, as he's tried to shine the spotlight on his rival, Trump has appeared...

Viewers of the latest Republican presidential debate didn't get a straight story from the candidates on U.S. taxes vs. the world, the state of the health insurance marketplace under "Obamacare" or what might happen if that law is taken away.
Among...

Illinois manufacturers are betting that a free trade area deal pushed by President Barack Obama will help grow their export sales to Southeast Asian economies.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is expected to bolster access to new markets and reduce...

In a triumph for President Barack Obama, sweeping legislation to strengthen the administration's hand in global trade talks advanced toward Senate passage Thursday after a showdown vote that remained in doubt until the final moment.
The 62-38 vote, two...

Emily A. Mattison has joined the Chicago office of international law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP as of counsel in the global gaming practice. She will focus her practice on gaming regulatory compliance, licensure, and corporate counseling. Mattison...

President Barack Obama and Republican congressional leaders are trying to pass a bill granting the president the authority to fast-track trade agreements through Congress. If passed, Congress would be forced to vote up or down on any...

That free trade is advantageous to both sides is the rarest of political propositions — provable, indeed mathematically. David Ricardo did so in 1817. The Law of Comparative Advantage has held up nicely for 198 years.
Nor is this abstract theory. We've...

A wetlands area in northern Door County has been recognized as globally significant for protection under an international treaty.
The Nature Conservancy applied for the designation the Door Peninsula Coastal Wetlands under the Ramsar Convention.
The...

Senators reached a deal Wednesday to move forward on President Barack Obama's trade agenda only one day after Democrats embarrassed him by blocking it.Lawmakers said roughly a dozen Senate Democrats agreed to let full-blown debate begin after both...

For a long time, there was a bipartisan consensus for free trade. President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, negotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement and Democrat Bill Clinton got it passed. It prevailed in the Senate in 1993 with the support...

For a long time, there was a bipartisan consensus for free trade. President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, negotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement and Democrat Bill Clinton got it passed. It prevailed in the Senate in 1993 with the support...

The Vatican officially recognized the state of Palestine in a new treaty finalized Wednesday, immediately sparking Israeli ire and accusations that the move hurt peace prospects.
The treaty, which concerns the activities of the Catholic Church in...

Perhaps it was just an open date on his calendar that led President Barack Obama to pump for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a controversial trade deal, on the 70th anniversary of V-E Day. The president didn't mention the coincidence in his speech Friday...

Congressman Dan Lipinski (IL-3) and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (IL-2) were joined this morning at a Chicago manufacturing plant by a spokesperson from the office of Congressman Danny Davis (IL-7) and representatives from organized labor, environmental...

Congressman Dan Lipinski (IL-3) and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (IL-2) were joined this morning at a Chicago manufacturing plant by a spokesperson from the office of Congressman Danny Davis (IL-7) and representatives from organized labor, environmental...

Political debates often pit fear against hope, and when it comes to international trade agreements, many Democrats prefer to scare. It's a durable strategy that they can't relinquish — even though it usually fails.
If you're going to make a horror movie,...